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Madeleine McCann
The disappearance of Madeleine McCann occurred on the evening of Thursday, 3 May 2007 when a British girl, Madeleine McCann, went missing from the holiday apartment in Praia da Luz, Algarve in Portugal, which she was staying in with her parents. Madeleine, who was in a bedroom with her two two-year old siblings, was initially thought to have only "wandered off" by Portuguese Police, but further investigation by Portuguese police suggested an abduction. Madeleine McCann Madeleine Beth McCann (born 12 May 2003 in Leicester, England) is a British toddler who is the eldest daughter of Kate, a general practitioner in Melton Mowbray, and Gerry McCann, a cardiologist at Glenfield Hospital in Leicester. Madeleine, who has a brother and a sister, twins Sean and Amelie, two years old, lives with her family in Rothley, England. A notable identification feature is her right eye that has a type of coloboma, a complete split in the iris (a black radial strip reaching from the pupil out to the edge of the white) at '7 o'clock' position (i.e. about 30° clockwise from the bottom). Disappearance Madeleine disappeared from the apartment where the family was staying on the evening of May 3rd. At the time, her parents had put Madeleine and her two-year-old twin siblings to bed, and were dining 100 yards away with friends at a restaurant near the Mark Warner Ocean Summer Club. Kate and Gerry McCann reported to the police that they were taking turns checking on their children and that at approximately 21:00 Western European Summer Time Gerry checked on the children and they were all fine. At around 21:45 the couple returned from the restaurant to find an empty bed and the apartment door and window wide open and reported the incident to the police at 22:00. Staff and guests at the complex searched until 04:30 whilst police on the Spanish border and all airports in Portugal and Spain were notified. Timeline from 3 May to 4 May 2007 * 21:00 Gerry checked the children. * 21:45 The couple found that Madeleine was gone. * 22:00 Incident reported to the police. * 22:10 Police arrive at the hotel the McCann's were staying at. * 22:30 Police investigation unit start the investigation. * 04:30 Initial search called off. Investigation Early stages Portuguese police Polícia Judiciária (PJ) said on 6 May that they had a suspect in mind and believed the child is still alive in the area . Police with sniffer dogs searched the resort village, which has a population of about 1,000. However, on 8 May, 5 days after her disappearance, the Judiciária admitted they were unsure whether Madeleine was still alive. On 9 May Interpol released a yellow notice to all member police forces. Interpol yellow notice Portuguese media have reported that the PJ are pursuing two lines of investigation: an abduction by an international paedophilia network or an abduction by an illegal adoption network. Experts from Britain were flown out to assist the Portuguese police experts and Leicestershire Police sent family liaison officers to help the McCann family. On 11 May the local search for the suspect was called off after it had produced no results. Then on 13 May the Portuguese police admitted for the first time that they had no suspects in mind. The only tangible line of enquiry that they were prepared to disclose was that they were examining photographs taken by holidaymakers. Court hearings into the case began on 14 May. Murat and Malinka At 07:00 WEST on the morning of 14 May searches began at a villa Casa Liliana, owned by Jennifer Murat, a British citizen, near the apartment where the girl went missing. Police and forensic teams sealed off the house, and at 16:00 the swimming pool was drained. Three people, including her son Robert Murat, were questioned at the main police station in nearby Portimão. Robert, a frequent visitor to the villa, had drawn the suspicion of Lori Campbell, a Sunday Mirror journalist, who informed the police. Former classmate Gaynor de Jesus said: "I do know that he has been the official translator for the police". Murat had said he was deeply concerned about Madeleine’s case because he had recently lost custody of his own three-and-a-half year old daughter who looked like the missing girl. No arrests have been made. Under Portuguese law arrests can only be made when a person has been given arguido (suspect) status officially; prior to being given this status persons are treated as witnesses. On 15 May Robert Murat was given this status but he has not been arrested or charged. It is not clear if Murat or the Police asked for the arguido status, it is thought that Murat might have asked for the status as it gives extra rights such as the right to remain silent. Murat has since gone to an unknown destination. Chief Inspector Olegário de Sousa told a news conference on 15 May that a 33-year-old had been interrogated, but not enough evidence was found to justify arresting him. Sousa said police had searched five houses on Monday and seized "various materials" from the properties which were being subjected to forensic tests and had questioned two other people as witnesses. The suspect has signed an identity and residence statement which prevents him from moving house or leaving the country, and requires him to regularly report to police. Though no names were mentioned in the conference, the 33-year-old is believed to be Robert Murat and the other two questioned to be Murat's alleged girlfriend Michaela Walczuch, a German, and her former husband Luis Antonio, a Portuguese. Despite Murat's reluctance to make a public statement, he has stated that he believed the case to have "ruined his life" and that his only way of survival would be the capture of Madeleine's captor. Murat has stated that he is being made a "scapegoat" so that the police can be seen to have found a suspect. On 16 May 2007, it was believed that two cars used by the Murats have been examined, and computers, mobile phones and several video tapes were taken away from their villa. It also emerged that a British architect who built the villa where Murat lives was ignored when he called police about a hidden basement within the property. The police were understood to have taken in for questioning Sergey Malinka, 22, a man of Russian origin, from whose property officers also took away a laptop computer and two hard drives. Malinka had set up a website for Murat. According to the Portuguese media, Malinka is said to be a convicted child sexual offender and a computer technician who is believed to be on good terms with Robert Murat, as the two exchanged frequent phone calls since Madeleine's disappearance—the reason the authorities started suspecting him. The following day, a press conference was held in which Chief Police Inspector Olegário Sousa reiterated there was insufficient evidence to make an arrest. Regarding Sergey Malinka, police said that he had been questioned as a witness for approximately 5 hours, which did not, due to the "dynamic" nature of the investigation, mean the witness couldn't become a suspect. Malinka spoke negatively of the coverage of the case in the Portuguese media, which had alleged that he was a convicted sexual offender, and denied he had contacted Murat and claimed to be "completely innocent". On 18 May, though, inconsistencies in his account of his relationship with Robert Murat emerged; while the Russian IT specialist had said he had not contacted Murat in a year, he mentioned three months to another reporter while Murat’s mobile phone records allegedly show he called Mr Malinka at 23:40 on the night Madeleine went missing. On 19 May, Portuguese detectives flew to England to interview Dawn Murat, the estranged wife of Robert Murat. Possible sightings On 8 May 2007, it was reported that police in the mountainous town of Nelas, northern central Portugal, had received information of a girl matching Madeleine's description who was seen with a man in a supermarket. The man, a Belgian citizen, stopped at the supermarket with his daughter and left the place in a car before police could be contacted, but Police later confirmed that the sighting had been a false alarm. On 9 May, the 24 Horas newspaper reported that police had found a vehicle near Praia da Luz that may have been used by the kidnapper. On 9 May 2007, it transpired that CCTV video from a petrol station near Lagos showed a child matching Madeleine's description with a woman, with whom the child was having an altercation, and two men. Other people in the resort have come forward to report unusual incidents including a woman who noticed a man trying to take away a pram and a man who caught a stranger taking photographs of young blonde girls on a beach. On 10 May 2007 it was reported that the car, in which the three people who were caught on CCTV at the petrol station were travelling, had British number plates and it has been claimed that the person caught taking photographs was definitely one of the men on the CCTV footage. On 17 May, an anonymous witness contacted police claiming to have spotted a Fiat Marea with a forged license plate, in Pinhal Novo, Palmela, Setúbal, which allegedly transported the missing toddler. Not much emphasis was put on this particular tip, though, given the existence of several similar cases of such sightings, from such geographically disperse regions as Spain, Switzerland or Morocco, though Chief Police Officer Olegário Sousa assured police were investigating such leads. On 18 May, Marie Olli, a Norwegian woman living in the Spanish town of Fuengirola, contacted the police claiming she had seen a girl matching Madeleine's description in a petrol station in Marrakech, Morocco, on 9 May. The girl, who was said to have appeared sad, was allegedly accompanied by a man in his late 30s. Madeleine's Fund A fighting fund, known as [http://www.bringmadeleinehome.com/news/fund.asp Madeleine’s Fund: Leaving No Stone Unturned], was launched in Leicester on 16 May, with support from former local rugby union star Martin Johnson. The purpose of the fund is to help the family with their costs and to continue the investigation independently, should that prove necessary. The family said that any extra funds would be used to aid in the search for other abducted children. The website reportedly received 58 million hits and 16,000 messages of support by 18 May, only two days after its launch. The family have remained in the same Mark Warner holiday resort since the disappearance. Madeleine's father made a brief trip to the UK on 20 May to help finalise the campaign for the search for his daughter. Appeals There were many appeals for Madeleine's safe return ranging from her family to celebrities, and from the police for photographs. on 17 May 2007.]] From the family Her father, Gerry McCann, said, "Words cannot describe the anguish and despair that we are feeling. Please, if you have Madeleine, let her come home to her Mummy, Daddy, brother and sister." He went on to say that the family would leave "no stone unturned" in the search for Madeleine and that he and his wife "remained positive." Madeleine's aunt, Philomena McCann, drew up a poster to circulate in a chain email to help find the child. She also commented during a live phone interview that there was little coverage of the case in other countries apart from the UK and Portugal. From the police On 21 May, the British Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP) reported that British police are calling on visitors to the Ocean Club Resort, Praia da Luz or the surrounding areas in the two weeks leading up to Madeleine’s disappearance on Thursday 3 May to provide copies of any relevant photographs taken during their stay. From football Manchester United footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, who is Portuguese, made a televised appeal on MUTV for her safe return saying "I was very upset to hear of the abduction of Madeleine McCann and I appeal to anyone with information to come forward, please come forward." Chelsea and England footballer John Terry and his Portuguese teammate Paulo Ferreira said that they were "devastated to hear that young Maddy was abducted. Our thoughts and feelings go out to her parents, her family and we are urging anyone out there with any information at all, please, please, please come forward." On 11 May 2007, David Beckham also made a public appeal. "If you have seen this little girl please could you go to your local authorities or police and give any information that you have," said Beckham, holding up a poster with a photograph of Madeleine."David Beckham appeals for information on missing toddler Madeleine McCann", International Herald Tribune, 11 May 2007 After a picture was released of Madeleine in an Everton shirt, Everton's Portuguese footballers Nuno Valente and Manuel Fernandes appealed for any news on her whereabouts and Phil Neville issued the following statement on behalf of the club. "Everton has fans all over the world and I know that they, along with everyone connected with the football club, are hoping and praying for Madeleine's safe return. Our thoughts are very much with the family at this extremely distressing time." Manager David Moyes added "Everybody here is desperately wanting to hear good news and my thoughts and prayers are with the family. If anybody out there knows anything, please come forward". Celtic footballer Neil Lennon made an appeal for Madeleine's safety and yellow armbands were worn on 12 May 2007 against Aberdeen to mark her 4th birthday. A video appealing for help with the search for Madeleine was broadcast to Spanish football fans visiting the city of Glasgow for the UEFA Cup final on 16 May. Another film was broadcast at half-time during the English FA Cup Final on 19 May. Prior to the Champion's League final on Wednesday 23 May, Liverpool FC's squad were photographed with a banner appealing for any information on Madeleine's whereabouts. Reaction The Portuguese ambassador in London, António Santana Carlos said, on 8 May, that the case was of "great concern" to Portugal and asked people to trust the police, amidst growing criticism of their handling of the case. President Anibal Cavaco Silva announced on 9 May that he was following the case "with great concern", adding that the police were "doing everything to find the child alive". Also on 9 May, Tony Blair's spokesperson said that the Prime Minister was following the case closely and that "we are helping in whatever way we can". Publicity Read the "Help Madeleine" blog http://helpfindmaddie.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default An official web site for the search has been set up. A large numer of websites with similar but misspelled titles were registered after the disappearance, which is known as typosquatting. Several of these website contain content not related to Madeleine McCann. Some public posters appealing for information about her, include the word LOOK in big uppercase with a reproduction of her coloboma as a radial line inside the first letter O. An unofficial one minute's silence was held for Madeleine on 21 May. Kate observed the silence, but since it was organised by an anonymous viral email, it was not thought to be widely observed. Rewards The total rewards on offer currently stand at over £2.6 million including: * £1,500,000 (€2,200,000) including £250,000 by the News of the World, £250,000 by Sir Philip Green, £50,000 by Simon Cowell and £25,000 by Coleen McLoughlin. Other contributors include Sir Richard Branson, JK Rowling, and Bill Kenwright. * £1,000,000 (€1,470,000) by British businessman Stephen Vineyard. * £100,000 (€147,000) by a colleague of Kate McCann. * '' (£10,250) €15,000'' by Portuguese newspaper Record. * £10,000 (€14,700) by The Sun. References External links * Official site, with a link to the appeal Madeleine’s Fund: Leaving No Stone Unturned * http://helpfindmaddie.wiki-site.com/index.php/Main_Page Category:Kidnapped children